The Bear

By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter

I was listening to a man who runs a camp talk about the first day of camp. He was in his office as the campers were being dropped off, about 300 campers plus parents and grandparents, figure about 1000 people came into the parking lot saying goodbye to the kids for the summer.

He received a call from one counselor he knows to be a prankster saying, “there’s a bear in a tree next to the parking.”

“No, tell me the truth.”

“There’s a bear in a tree next to the parking lot.”

The camp director knows that if he diverts people in a different direction, he will answer questions from 350 pairs of parents and grandparents.

“I want to know what’s going on.”

He went to the parking lot and found the tree, looks up, and, yes, there is a bear there. Four paws dangling down, sound asleep.

He stationed a counselor nearby and deflect people away from the area, thus avoiding all the questions being asked. The bear continued sleeping. Everyone went on their merry way. Everything is fine.

In telling the story my friend continued to say (and I think it’s a lovely point), when you think about it when you meet a bear, what do you try to do?